Equity Analyst, LightStream Research

Shifara Samsudeen, ACMA, CGMA

Equity Analyst

Long-Short Analysis on Japan, Asia and the World

LightStream Research

LightStream conducts quantitatively rigorous and data-driven analysis with a focus on Japan and Asia.

We consistently cover the Tech, Consumer and Industrial sectors, and provide ECM and Events coverage more broadly.

We supplement traditional qualitative insights from company relationships with a robust quantitative foundation that examines as much historical data as is available.
We further refine the accuracy of our insights and calls through the use of alternative data to flesh out current trends, and through a valuation framework that emphasises non-superficial peer group selection and a proper attempt to understand the metrics and changes that have driven security valuations in the past.

Equity Bottom-Up

BayCurrent Consulting  / Equity Bottom-Up

<p><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/baycurrent-consulting-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:25985:1" rel="noopener">Baycurrent Consulting (6532 JP)</a>  offers a range of consultancy services in Japan including development and formulation of business strategy, digital transformation, M&amp;A and JV, improvement in operational capabilities and IT Services. The Covid-19 outbreak has accelerated the digital transformation in Japan which has led to increased requirements for consulting services in the country.</p><p>BayCurrent’s share price has rallied almost 200% over the last 12-months to JPY46,250 per share from JPY15,740 per share a year ago. In this insight, we examine the company’s business model, key drivers, outlook, financials and valuation.</p>

Baycurrent Consulting (6532 JP)  offers a range of consultancy services in Japan including development and formulation of business strategy, digital transformation, M&amp;A and JV, improvement in operational capabilities and IT Services. The Covid-19 outbreak has accelerated the digital transformation in Japan which has led to increased requirements for consulting services in the country.BayCurrent’s share price has rallied almost 200% over the last 12-months to JPY46,250 per share from JPY15,740 per share a year ago. In this insight, we examine the company’s business model, key drivers, outlook, financials and valuation.

Baycurrent Consulting: Strong Fundamentals; Up Almost 200% and Further Upside Likely

Senior Technology Analyst, Japanese Equities, LightStream Research

Scott Foster

Senior Technology Analyst, Japanese Equities

<p>The shares are down 28% from their 52-week high, but still selling at 75x management's EPS guidance for FY Mar-22. Is it time to buy into the decline? Over the past month, the shares have rebounded by 8%.</p><p>Nihon M&amp;A Center is more expensive than listed competitors M&amp;A Capital Partners and Strike, but much larger in terms of sales and many times larger in terms of market cap. If you want a liquid play on M&amp;A, this is it.</p><p>Annual revenue growth has remained above 12% through the COVID-19 pandemic and margins have remained stable. The number of new M&amp;A mandates increased by 15.5% in FY Mar-21 to a level 24% greater than the number of transactions completed.</p><p>Management's guidance is usually conservative and looks to be so again this year. On a 3-year view, we expect revenues and profits to rise by about 40%. On a 6-year view, they could double.</p><p>All in all, we think the M&amp;A opportunity in Japan outweighs the risks, which include another wave of COVID infections and macro-economic difficulties.</p>

The shares are down 28% from their 52-week high, but still selling at 75x management's EPS guidance for FY Mar-22. Is it time to buy into the decline? Over the past month, the shares have rebounded by 8%.Nihon M&amp;A Center is more expensive than listed competitors M&amp;A Capital Partners and Strike, but much larger in terms of sales and many times larger in terms of market cap. If you want a liquid play on M&amp;A, this is it.Annual revenue growth has remained above 12% through the COVID-19 pandemic and margins have remained stable. The number of new M&amp;A mandates increased by 15.5% in FY Mar-21 to a level 24% greater than the number of transactions completed.Management's guidance is usually conservative and looks to be so again this year. On a 3-year view, we expect revenues and profits to rise by about 40%. On a 6-year view, they could double.All in all, we think the M&amp;A opportunity in Japan outweighs the risks, which include another wave of COVID infections and macro-economic difficulties.

Nihon M&A (2127 JP): The Most Liquid Way to Play Japan's Structural M&A Opportunity

Quality-first, Business-perspective Strategy, Urbem (HK) Limited

Steven Chen

Quality-first, Business-perspective Strategy

Kato Hong Kong Holdings / Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>The aging population is among the most unarguable mega-trends in today's world and can act as both a powerful headwind and a tailwind (for some industries);</li>
<li>In the past, I have touched upon some businesses benefiting drastically from the demographic tailwind, but admittedly, most of them are well recognized, and hence, expensive;</li>
<li>In this episode, I would like to discuss one more name monetizing the aging population in the Far East;</li>
<li>While being lesser-known, Kato Holdings appears to be a decent candidate to beat my 20% hurdle rate and become a multi-bagger in the foreseeable future.</li>
</ul>


The aging population is among the most unarguable mega-trends in today's world and can act as both a powerful headwind and a tailwind (for some industries);
In the past, I have touched upon some businesses benefiting drastically from the demographic tailwind, but admittedly, most of them are well recognized, and hence, expensive;
In this episode, I would like to discuss one more name monetizing the aging population in the Far East;
While being lesser-known, Kato Holdings appears to be a decent candidate to beat my 20% hurdle rate and become a multi-bagger in the foreseeable future.


One Hidden Gem Monetizing The Aging Population

Pan-Asia Index Rebalances/ Events/ Delta One, Periscope Analytics

Brian Freitas

Pan-Asia Index Rebalances/ Events/ Delta One

Quantitative Analysis

<div><p>The Asia Short Interest weekly looks at moves in market wide short interest and highlights movements in stock specific short interest across Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Taiwan using the last available data published by the relevant authorities.</p></div><div><p>Hong Kong saw shorts rise on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/xinyi-solar-holdings-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:318:1" rel="noopener">Xinyi Solar Holdings (968 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/lenovo-group-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:13359:1" rel="noopener">Lenovo (992 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/ping-an-insurance-grp-co-of-china-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:12880:1" rel="noopener">Ping An Insurance (H) (2318 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/beijing-kuaishou-technology-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:29725:1" rel="noopener">Kuaishou Technology (1024 HK)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/jd-health-international-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:29677:1" rel="noopener">JD Health (6618 HK)</a> while there was short covering on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/alibaba-group" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:28434:1" rel="noopener">Alibaba Group (9988 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/xiaomi-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:24409:1" rel="noopener">Xiaomi Corp (1810 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/haier-smart-home-co-ltd-b3ef445f-0f54-4586-8c58-9073de98d60e" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:31105:1" rel="noopener">Haier Smart Home Co Ltd (6690 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/wuxi-apptec-co-ltd-bf4a1265-beef-48b6-b82d-29308426030f" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:27795:1" rel="noopener">WuXi AppTec Co. Ltd. (2359 HK)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/aia-group-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:14895:1" rel="noopener">AIA Group Ltd (1299 HK)</a>. Shorts increased in Communication Services, Information Technology and Materials stocks, while decreasing in Utilities, Consumer Staples, Energy, Consumer Discretionary and Health Care stocks.</p></div><div><p>In Japan, stocks that saw the most shorts were <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/seven-i-holdings-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:1041:1" rel="noopener">Seven &amp; I Holdings (3382 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/toshiba-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:637:1" rel="noopener">Toshiba Corp (6502 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/monex-group-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:14211:1" rel="noopener">Monex Group Inc (8698 JP)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nihon-m-a-center-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:17616:1" rel="noopener">Nihon M&amp;A Center (2127 JP)</a> while shorts decreased on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/rakuten-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:31:1" rel="noopener">Rakuten Inc (4755 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/fast-retailing-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:751:1" rel="noopener">Fast Retailing (9983 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/itochu-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:18448:1" rel="noopener">Itochu Corp (8001 JP)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/rohm-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:2953:1" rel="noopener">ROHM Co Ltd (6963 JP)</a>. Shorts increased in Consumer Staples, Industrials, Financials and Materials, while shorts covered in the Consumer Discretionary sector.</p></div><div><p>In Korea, short increased on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/doosan-infracore-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3982:1" rel="noopener">Doosan Infracore (042670 KS)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/lotte-chemical-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:8757:1" rel="noopener">Lotte Chemical (011170 KS)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/posco-chemical-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:12421:1" rel="noopener">Posco Chemical Co Ltd (003670 KS)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/hyundai-motor-co" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:155:1" rel="noopener">Hyundai Motor Co (005380 KS)</a> while shorts decreased on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/sk-hynix-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:16955:1" rel="noopener">SK Hynix (000660 KS)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/celltrion-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:991:1" rel="noopener">Celltrion Inc (068270 KS)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/korea-electric-power-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:16:1" rel="noopener">Korea Electric Power (015760 KS)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/lg-display-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:7145:1" rel="noopener">LG Display (034220 KS)</a>. </p></div><div><p>Stocks in Taiwan that saw the highest increase in shorts were <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/taiwan-semiconductor-manufacturing-company" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:11230:1" rel="noopener">TSMC (2330 TT)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/pegatron-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:12852:1" rel="noopener">Pegatron Corp (4938 TT)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/fitipower-integrated-tech" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:8712:1" rel="noopener">Fitipower Integrated Tech (4961 TT)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/walsin-technology-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:11084:1" rel="noopener">Walsin Technology (2492 TT)</a> while shorts were covered on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/taiwan-cement" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:19736:1" rel="noopener">Taiwan Cement (1101 TT)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/evergreen-marine-corp-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:15428:1" rel="noopener">Evergreen Marine Corp (2603 TT)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/innolux-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:4509:1" rel="noopener">Innolux Corp (3481 TT)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/richwave-technology-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:18629:1" rel="noopener">Richwave Technology (4968 TT)</a>.</p></div>

The Asia Short Interest weekly looks at moves in market wide short interest and highlights movements in stock specific short interest across Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Taiwan using the last available data published by the relevant authorities.Hong Kong saw shorts rise on Xinyi Solar Holdings (968 HK), Lenovo (992 HK), Ping An Insurance (H) (2318 HK), Kuaishou Technology (1024 HK) and JD Health (6618 HK) while there was short covering on Alibaba Group (9988 HK), Xiaomi Corp (1810 HK), Haier Smart Home Co Ltd (6690 HK), WuXi AppTec Co. Ltd. (2359 HK) and AIA Group Ltd (1299 HK). Shorts increased in Communication Services, Information Technology and Materials stocks, while decreasing in Utilities, Consumer Staples, Energy, Consumer Discretionary and Health Care stocks.In Japan, stocks that saw the most shorts were Seven &amp; I Holdings (3382 JP), Toshiba Corp (6502 JP), Monex Group Inc (8698 JP) and Nihon M&amp;A Center (2127 JP) while shorts decreased on Rakuten Inc (4755 JP), Fast Retailing (9983 JP), Itochu Corp (8001 JP) and ROHM Co Ltd (6963 JP). Shorts increased in Consumer Staples, Industrials, Financials and Materials, while shorts covered in the Consumer Discretionary sector.In Korea, short increased on Doosan Infracore (042670 KS), Lotte Chemical (011170 KS), Posco Chemical Co Ltd (003670 KS) and Hyundai Motor Co (005380 KS) while shorts decreased on SK Hynix (000660 KS), Celltrion Inc (068270 KS), Korea Electric Power (015760 KS) and LG Display (034220 KS). Stocks in Taiwan that saw the highest increase in shorts were TSMC (2330 TT), Pegatron Corp (4938 TT), Fitipower Integrated Tech (4961 TT) and Walsin Technology (2492 TT) while shorts were covered on Taiwan Cement (1101 TT), Evergreen Marine Corp (2603 TT), Innolux Corp (3481 TT) and Richwave Technology (4968 TT).

Asia Short Interest: Kuaishou, JD Health, Xiaomi, 7&I, Monex, Rakuten, Hynix, Hyundai, Fitipower

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul>
<li>Nihon M&amp;A Center - healthy growth, booming ventures, solid economic moat; </li>
<li>Kakaku.com Inc. - growth momentum has yet to gather;</li>
<li>oRo Co. - resilient growth, continuous shareholder value creation on track.</li>
</ul>


Nihon M&amp;A Center - healthy growth, booming ventures, solid economic moat; 
Kakaku.com Inc. - growth momentum has yet to gather;
oRo Co. - resilient growth, continuous shareholder value creation on track.


Our Takeaways From The Recent Results - Nihon M&A Center, Kakaku.com Inc., ORO Co.

Japan

Nihon M&A Center Inc. provides M&A advisory services to small and medium-sized enterprises. The Company, established by certified public accountants and tax accountants, offers M&A related services such as reorganization and MBO (Management Buy-Out) as well.

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Nihon M&A Center (2127 JP)

Baycurrent Consulting: Strong Fundamentals; Up Almost 200% and Further Upside Likely

BayCurrent offers consultancy services in Japan and stock price has been up almost 200% over the last 12-months. Covid-19 has accelerated DX in...

Shifara Samsudeen, ACMA, CGMA

Nihon M&A (2127 JP): The Most Liquid Way to Play Japan's Structural M&A Opportunity

The most liquid play on Japan's structural M&A opportunity. Share price down 28% from its 52-week high. Not cheap, but sales and profits could rise...

Scott Foster

One Hidden Gem Monetizing The Aging Population

While being lesser-known, this Hong Kong-based micro-cap appears fundamentally strong and reasonably priced to beat my 20% hurdle rate and become a...

Steven Chen

Asia Short Interest: Kuaishou, JD Health, Xiaomi, 7&I, Monex, Rakuten, Hynix, Hyundai, Fitipower

The Insight looks at large short interest movements across HK, Japan, Korea and Taiwan stocks and highlights large increases/decreases in shorts to...

Brian Freitas

Our Takeaways From The Recent Results - Nihon M&A Center, Kakaku.com Inc., ORO Co.

Three high-quality Japanese companies on our "Investable Universe" list reported their respective recent-quarter results over the past couple of...

Steven Chen

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